The WSL returns this weekend after the international break, which means it’s also the start of a new ‘leg’, with Matchweek 6 kicking off Leg 2 for fantasy. A new leg means ALL fantasy managers get unlimited transfers in Matchweek 6, and it’s incredibly important to get them right.
There are no WSL2 matches in MW6 or MW8 due to cup competition activity, so you’ll need to take that into account. Leg 2 is also the longest of the season at six matchweeks – we won’t get unlimited transfers again until MW12, unless you use your wildcard, of course.
But before we look ahead to MW6, let’s take a look back at MW5. Our team scored 83 points, bringing us to 418 for the season. That puts us 154th in the world and just seven points from the top 100.
The team below is worth £98.5m and lines up in a 3-5-2 formation.
Starting XI
Anneke Borbe (Arsenal) £4.5m
Borbe’s inclusion in this team is a tactical one. Hannah Hampton is on the bench and, with a clean sheet in her last four WSL appearances, she’s likely to return points. But it’s always sensible to start a keeper playing on Saturday and sub them out if they don’t perform.
Arsenal have rotated their keepers this season, but luckily for us, Arsenal’s line-up will be out before the deadline. I’m expecting Borbe to be Slegers’ pick but if someone else starts in goal, put them in instead. We have the budget to move to Misa if needed.
Ellie Carpenter (Chelsea) £7.0m
Carpenter is the highest-scoring defender in the game so far this season on 48 points, and it’s not just clean sheets where the marauding Australian scores points. She has scored points from goals, assists, attacking actions, defensive actions and bonus points. We’re tripling up on Chelsea and Carpenter is an easy pick.
Andrea Medina (Manchester United) £5.5m
One of the signings of the season so far, Medina has been on fire for United. She’s facing a Charlton side with the bluntest attack in the league, having scored just two goals in the opening five matches. Medina will also be riding the high of making her debut for the Spanish senior side during the international break.
Alex Greenwood (Manchester City) £6.0m
It’ll probably come as no surprise that we’re also tripling up on City this week. They are the only team to have taken all 15 points and have conceded just six goals in the process. Greenwood’s 5.4 points per match represents decent value for her £6m price, and she’s also a good pick considering she’s on corners and free-kicks.
Lisa Baum (Arsenal) £6.5m
The German’s transfer didn’t create too many headlines in the summer, mainly due to the lofty reputations of Arsenal’s other signings. However, five matches in, many would argue that she has been Arsenal’s best signing this season and potentially their best player outright. She’s facing a Birmingham City side averaging 2.4 goals conceded per match, so there are points to be scored here.
Océane Hurtré (Birmingham City) £6.0m
A difficult fixture, but that hasn’t mattered for Hurtré so far this season. Birmingham City are yet to win a game but Hurtré is the top-scoring player in fantasy and also joint-top for both goals and goal involvements in the WSL. Because her match is on Saturday, you can put her in your XI and then bench her if she doesn’t return well. It’s a low-risk, high-reward pick.
Lauren Hemp (Manchester City) £8.0m
Lauren Hemp is the second-highest scorer in fantasy behind Hurtré. The Lioness played good minutes in both matches during the international break, so we know her fitness is good and she’s likely to be available. Brighton (H) is a relatively kind fixture for a team with a 100% record, so expect good points.
Alexia Putellas (London City Lionesses) £8.5m
Even the very best need time to settle, but it’s not taken long for Putellas. She averaged 2.5 points across her first two matches before averaging 11.7 across the next three, including a 16-point haul against Spurs in MW5. She’s expensive, but she’s worth it.
Daniëlle van de Donk (London City Lionesses) £4.5m
Another LCL player makes the squad thanks to a kind fixture this weekend. Everton have been defensively strong so far, but LCL have the quality to disrupt the Toffees’ solidity. At just £4.5m, the Dutch midfielder is fantastic value, especially given how often she has played further up the pitch.
Bunny Shaw (Manchester City) £12.5m
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. 67% of teams have Shaw and it’s easy to see why. She’s the joint-top-scoring forward (42 points) and has historically been a safe premium pick. She also netted for Jamaica during the international break, which suggests she should be available this weekend.
Beata Olsson (Liverpool) £6.5m
A slightly left-field pick, but hear me out. Liverpool face Villa this weekend, the side that has conceded the most xG in the WSL this season. Vivien Endemann has generally been a better pick so far this season, but the German didn’t feature in MW5 due to a minor calf injury and was not called up for international duty.
If Endemann doesn’t play, Olsson will be the player Liverpool look to for goals on Sunday. Olsson didn’t make it on to the pitch for Sweden during the international break, but she was on the bench for both matches, suggesting she should be physically fit and available for Sunday.
The Bench
Hannah Hampton (Chelsea) £5.5m
Chelsea’s opponents this weekend, Spurs, may be the top scorers in the WSL this season, but they’ve not faced Hannah Hampton yet. She’s only conceded one goal this season and has kept a clean sheet in her last four. Unless Borbe (or Misa) gets a good points haul on Saturday, Hampton will be coming in for Sunday’s game.
Melvine Malard (Chelsea) £8.0m
Forwards are an area where we’re going to take a bit of risk this week. Malard has been decent value this season, but only when she has played. She’s averaged six points in the three matches she has featured in after missing the opening two. At £8m she’s not the cheapest option, but as we have the budget, she’s a good pick.
Hanna Lundkvist (Manchester United) £5.0m
Similar to Medina, Lundkvist’s inclusion is driven by the fact that United are likely to keep a clean sheet this weekend. The defender has played the full 90 in her team’s last four WSL matches and in both Sweden matches during the international break. The only reason she hasn’t made our XI is because she is less likely to score attacking-action points than the defenders we have picked.
Alejandra Bernabé (Liverpool) £4.5m
Liverpool’s opponents this weekend, Aston Villa, are averaging 0.6 xG per match this season, so it’s always useful to pick a defender facing them. Bernabé is averaging 5.2 points per match, which makes her great value for her £4.5m price tag.
Captaincy choices
You know the drill, we’re doing separate captains for Saturday and Sunday.
For me, Lisa Baum is the player in Arsenal v Birmingham most likely to score the most points, so she’ll be getting my armband for Saturday. If she doesn’t return at least seven points, it’ll move over to Bunny Shaw for Sunday.
Set-and-forget
Borbe, Baum and Hurtré were all easy picks for the XI because they play on Saturday and can be replaced by bench players if they don’t perform. However, if you’re not going to tinker with your team on Sunday morning, you probably don’t want to start all three. I’d recommend setting your bench in this order: Borbe, Hurtré, Lundkvist, Bernabé.
As for the captaincy, just put it straight on Bunny Shaw, as she’s most likely to score well this week.
Differentials
These are the players that can give you the edge; the ones that most people have not noticed. Here are my top picks per position, with a maximum of 5% ownership:
GK: 2% - Elene Lete (London City Lionesses)
Defender: 1% - Hanna Lundkvist (Manchester United)
Midfielder: 3% - Lexi Lloyd-Smith (Crystal Palace)
Forward: 4% - Beata Olsson (Liverpool)
MW6 is probably the hardest matchweek of the season so far for picking differentials. Unlimited transfers mean that ‘hidden gems’ like Océane Hurtré and Andrea Medina are being picked up by a lot of teams. There are also no WSL2 fixtures, removing another source of high-quality differentials.
But there are still a few great shouts. I expect both LCL and Man Utd to keep clean sheets this weekend, so having a nailed-on starter from each is useful. Lexi Lloyd-Smith is at home to a West Ham side that have lost their last three. And with Endemann’s fitness in doubt, Olsson is likely to be Liverpool’s main goal threat.
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